The Dark Lady, a Nameccian creation myth
by Velasa
Summary: Formerly Kurai no Onna. Dearest beloved children, there is a story that is told of our pasts before our elder's grandfathers were ever born. Perhaps it is true, perhaps it is not. But a good story is always to be told.
1. Intro, setting the tale

Kurai No Onna (the Dark Lady), a Nameccian creation myth  
~ by Velasa

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I don't know why it's taken me so long to post this.. I wrote it in 2008 and had it all typed up but it just... never made it online. I'll be touching it up slightly from then to the tune of prerecorded rain since the weather's absolutely beautiful outside today. Continuing with the original intro now

I had a dream this morning that brought out this- a rewrite of one of the oldest stories I've ever done. The Lady's tale came up at first on a whim from a random note one of my warriors boys made just before he died in the very first version of Dreams. The first version of the story was awkward and overgrown and I never really liked it, but in the dream there was a young man telling a story and I knew that was how it had to be.

Rated PG because it's your normal creation myth sorta thing. There are touches that connect to the Dreams universe here but it stands on its own, particularly now. Originally I listened to midis of "White Reflection" and the Eva theme writing this, but this time I just had the humming of the rain outside the windows in my head. I think I'll blame Onyx and phenomenal Japanese fanart for this, because Mswari leapt from my head only after several hours of both

We'll start with setting the scene. Chapter two is the tale itself.

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The rounded room flickers with the green light of the chi fire by the far wall. Rain pelts the windows and draws streaks down the night darkened glass as the children huddle closer to the fire under their blankets- some gifted by the earthlings since their arrival, blessed few from the homeland made of adjissia fibers. The adults, the elders stay further back on the floor and against the walls. All are silent.

There's a gloom hanging over them much colder than the rain outside and the dark that they do not know from their own world. The children have adapted more quickly to their new surroundings, but these are a people lost. The earthlings are pleasant and have been kind to them, giving them somewhere quiet to live that has a little similarity to the open land of the larger islands of their homeworld. But they are not at home on this strange blue world. The storyteller knows this as he takes his place at the fire, young in years but old at his craft. Mswari raises his hands, the little ones who had been talking to each other fall silent, and when all eyes have come to him he speaks.


	2. The Story

Kurai No Onna (the Dark Lady), a Nameccian creation myth

~ By Velasa

My brothers, there is a tale that is told when the rains come and make the world cold and dark, though not usually so dark as this, and we draw all together in our homes to wait out the storms. There are many tales told, but this is the one about you and me and us and where we all come from. This is the tale of the Dark Lady, most beloved mother of our people. Come closer- ears open mouths shut little ones. Learn this tale so you can tell it to your children and grandchildren so that we may not forget that we are Nameccians, a good people with good stories that should not be forgotten though we have not the same home we once did.

Little ones, do you remember the suns? Of course. We had many suns. But long ago when the universe and Nameksei were young there was only one, the light of the great Father. He is the sky itself and within us all, whatever color he shines through your windows. The great Father sky reaches all across the universe, even here right now when it's raining and dark and so very nasty out. But even with all of the universe under his reach, he liked Nameksei best because she was the most beautiful green thing he'd ever seen. Dear Nameksei was where he liked to stay, curled in her oceans and her trees and her sands. The little part of him in all of us still likes her best, and that my brothers is why we ache so heavily at the loss of our homeworld. But they made us strong, strong enough to only have one of them under any circumstances that may come upon us, and the sun is with us still. And of course, we still have the Lady.

Who is the Lady, you ask? No doubt you've heard brother Latmasc throwing out oaths by her, but do you really know? Even if you do not know her you do, for she is deep in the heart of every Nameccian child and you know her name when you hear it. Lady is our Mother, dark as your eyes, born of both Nameksei and Father sky, who climbed out of an adjissia tree before they had flowers. Her eyes are as gentle and wonderful and green as the seas when they roll up on the beach and tickle your toes. This child of Father sky and Nameksei was beloved, way back in this time when there weren't many people anywhere and certainly none as special as the Lady. So Father sky and Nameksei graced Lady with all of the wonderful things of our Home. Lady grew up proud and strong and beautiful, and really really tall. Almost as tall as me. Alright, maybe a little taller. But Lady could make herself smaller. She could be sitting back behind you, or in your ear, or anywhere where there are Nameccians who may have need of her. She is with you always.

As the Lady was the best beloved one of Father sky and Nameksei they taught her all the right ways of living and gave her all she could have wanted in the world. She could heal and dance and sing and weave and make good wine from the adjissia's rare fruitings which were much less rare back then. She swam in the seas and curled up on the sand to sleep. But she was lonely, and all of the frogs and birds and fish seemed never to be able to change that. Lady was still deeply alone in her heart. Until He came, you see. One day He dropped down from the sky, not like Lady did but in a ship that could bear the whole of space to find Nameksei. He was tall and light and handsome, a little like me, and when Lady and He saw each other it was love. Love as great and full as any you'll find in our people, but with one not of our people. Strange, right? But we're all in some way the children of Father sky with pieces of him to us, even outsiders. You can connect to even these strangers, because through Father sky you've got pieces of them in you and pieces of you in them. If Maye will stop snickering, I'll continue you know.

Lady and He stayed close by one another, they danced and sang and drank good wine. They swam in the seas and curled up on the sand together. But the one thing they could not do together was fly. Lady loved it, but He couldn't get both feet off the ground at the same time except in his ship, and it just wasn't the same thing. One day when she was up with Father sky, He was so filled with love for her that He hoped against hope that hope was enough to float him, and with his arms out and a great love in his being he stepped off the tallest tower.

Lady was inconsolable. Nothing could be done, so deep was the depths of her sorrow. He no longer has a name, even in stories as good and old as this one because Lady could no longer bear to hear it. Lady cried the oceans deeper until they were as green as her eyes and the frogs and the birds and the fish had to beg her to stop so that she would not drown them all in the seas of her tears. Only two things helped. One is the adjissia. Father sky and Nameksei thought long and hard to make it more beautiful than it had ever been, and when Lady saw the blooms as pink and soft as a baby's belly in those big blue leaves her tears stopped. The second thing was us, little ones.

Yes, us. He was gone, but he left a little piece of himself behind in her belly and from them came a child. Lady called him Saichoro, the very first Saichoro in a long line of teachers and leaders that have been with us all the way down to Muuri-san right now. Lady loved him greatly and deeply and gave him all the wonderful gifts she could dream of. She taught him to heal and dance and sing and all those other things I've told you about before that your brains should still remember little ones. She was so happy with him that she decided to have another one. But He was gone and the thought of him made Lady's eyes swirl like the rain. So instead of finding another like He with whom she could bear more children, she spat out the first eggs. That's how we all do it to this day. The children grew close and grew up. They started our world just as we knew it, and there was great happiness for everyone in those times.

(Dear human not-so-children listening through the windows I must take a moment to speak to you on something of some importance. There is another version of this part of the story that is told, though not to the little ones for they would not understand. In this the Lady and He had two children, Saichoro and Saeyie. Saichoro and his story and his egg brothers are just the same as before, but Saeyie takes after He and looks much like him with her dark flame hair and her light skin and the wildness to her spirit. While Lady longed to love both her children the same she could not bear to look at Saeyie much of the time and it was split unfairly. Saeyie was just a child, like the little ones, and could not understand this and a great anger grew in her heart. This could not be calmed, by either Father sky or Nameksei or Saichoro and certainly not Lady, so one day when Saeyie could bear it no longer she took their father's ship and blasted off into space far away. There she found people like her, and with her power and her anger she lead them to be everything Lady had taught her children not to be. They murdered and stole and lusted and feasted on flesh, living hard and fast and dying young by the light of the moon instead of that of the sun. Children of the dark, rather than the light. All of this broke Lady's heart, and this is why she wanted no more of girl children. But that is another story for another time, and we have a story to finish for now.)

But like all great things, it was not to last. The suns out in the far cold reaches of the universe heard of this beautiful place and grew jealous of all the love and attention Father sky gave us. Some of them decided that they wanted to have a part of this too, and began to barrel across the great stretches of darkness towards Nameksei. Now by this time even Lady had grown old and risen up to be with Father sky and she had already become a story. To just step back down to Nameksei would have caused so big a commotion that there wouldn't have been time to tell of what was coming. You know how dearly we love an excuse for celebration, it would have gone on forever little ones! So Lady sent down signs to the seers and the dreamers, lights to the sky and some say even a little piece of herself, all that she could. But we could not believe that anything horrible could happen to us, children of the Lady and dearest beloved of Father sky and Nameksei. We weren't prepared when the war started between the suns and Father sky. There were wild storms and screaming seas and other horrible things and much was lost. Once again, Lady wept with only the stars to witness her tears.

Nameksei was made anew in time, again. The great teacher who survived was none other than our own Saichoro, who only so recently has left us to be with his fathers and grandfathers. He brought our people back almost by himself in our new world with our three suns that kept the darkness away. Even our Dark Lady, for a little while. But it all got better, as things always do when we remember the stories and respect the places we have in this little hunk of space. It was good again, for a time.

I don't need to tell you of what happened just a month ago. The loss of Nameksei is more than many of us can bear, but we are a strong, proud people with good stories and we still have Lady and Father sky. And Nameksei is not really gone- remember that she gave us a great gift. When the first Saichoro and his egg brothers were young, Nameksei gave each of them a dragonball, forged of her soil and the fire in her belly. They are here with us now, and they will help us find a new home. There are other nice worlds out there, maybe not the same, maybe they don't hum warm under your feet like Nameksei did but they could if you give them time. Earth is not so bad a stopping place. And we will find a new Nameksei, plant the adjissia brother Latmasc brought with him and plant our people there and be whole again. Lady will guide us there, same as she has always guided us.

Now, off to bed with you little scamps. It doesn't get as hot here so your bedtimes have switched to when it'd darkest out like the good little earthlings do, and you all know that. Off you go.

~End  
3/30/2008 10:13 PM (edited April '10)


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